Dear Mr. Walcott,
I have been led to believe by a report by the still-reputable broadcasting institution the BBC that your current predicament arises not from your determination to elicit greater remuneration from your employer, but from your aspiration to play as a centre forward. You say that:
I’ve been judged, with people saying it’s all about money. It’s never been that with me…Playing up front is important. It’s one of the main factors for me.
Well, I shall hold up my hand immediately and admit that I am one of those who has judged you. There are, in fact, several thousand of us who have paid considerable sums of money to gain admittance to the Grove and judge you either infrequently or on a regular basis, as circumstances admit. Let us not forget the thousands more who have made considerable efforts to follow and support their club every week from Jakarta to Reykjavik, and from Lagos to Zurich. Not all of us have formed the same opinion, but I think it is reasonable to suggest that not all of us are convinced by your assertion, or even by your performances on the pitch.
If, as you suggest money is not the issue, but ‘playing up front’ is ‘one of the main factors’, what, pray tell, are the other main factors? Do you require a bus of your own to transport you to away games without the unpleasant distraction of your teammates? Or should the club build a dedicated training facility for your own use?
Are you seriously asking us to believe this has nothing to do with cash? I put it to you that if playing up front is one of the main factors , there are 100,000 other factors per week that you would like to see on offer. But it must have dawned on you by now that this is not going to happen. How does that make you feel? Do you feel genuinely undervalued? If so, then you are certainly one of only two people who hold this view, and the other is your agent (and whether he believes it sincerely or not is irrelevant).
The fact is, Mr. Walcott, you have not ‘learned your trade’ (as you put it) by playing on the wing. There is no doubt that you are a talented player but you are a long way from the finished article. You say you joined the club as a striker. This is half true – you joined the club as a kid. You had potential then, and unlike many I believe you still have potential – but you are not worth £100,000 per week.
It is my view that no footballer is worth £100,000 per week – unless he/she spent his/her spare time conducting ground-breaking medical research or some other significant endeavour, and as far as I am aware, you are not currently engaged in any such activity (children’s books certainly don’t count). I am not so naive as to expect footballers to lobby for a return to the £6 per week maximum wage, but I find it difficult to accept a player turning down £75,000 per week when my own take home salary amounts to the equivalent of £18,000 a year. Of course, £75,000 is a reported figure – I cannot be certain that it is accurate. But comments as reported today are little than a Van Persie-style effort to elicit some measure of sympathy from a disillusioned support base. And, to be honest, you’re going to be about as successful in this attempt as your former teammate was with his.
One final observation: you once remarked that you wanted to emulate Henry and become an Arsenal legend. Henry was a winger who was converted back to a striker by his manager. Henry himself was dubious about the conversion, but he trusted his manager and did as he was asked, rather successfully as it turned out. Unlike Henry, however, you have decided to dispense with the proven judgment of your manager and to try and force his hand by making demands that are not only unreasonable and selfish, but are based on an entirely unrealistic notion of your own worth. I can only conclude that you have either chosen your advisers badly and allowed yourself to be deluded, or that you were already deluded and have advised your representatives accordingly. Either way, you find yourself confined to the bench, and unless you come to your senses, you are welcome to it.
Yours etc.,
The disappointed Reverend.
Nicely done!
Face to face with the truth. Point blank is what it is. Wilcott is deluded by self defined bigotry.
Dear Mr article writer, I love υr beautiful nonsense article, I’m sure u dont love arsenal than I do and both of us does not share in Arsenal’s profit. Either Walcott demands to play as a centre forward or wants 100K per week is left to him and the club, all human being are selfish being, I’m sure υ will prefer to sit at home and get paid if u have the chance but pls manage ur 18K per annum. Walcott stated what he wanted be it to be a center forward or 100K/week cos he knows he’s due for it as the case my be, it’s left to the club so dont pick ur fingers to type insultive alphabets about peoples personality. Fuck shit
Such bollocks, if you can’t express yourself properly STFU and keep chewing your nails son.
Shut up! He should learn how to play from “The Ox”.
awsome and spot on..18,000 per annun, are u a nigerian?
Well said
he wants us to believe that crap coming out his mauff. Does he really think if he goes to man city,he will get the top striker role 
maybe liverpool(they seriously need a striker)
Firstly Henry converted himself into a central striker, by scoring bags of goals cutting in from the left wing…
He decimated defences for 2 years before he was made the main striker..
Walcott has done nothing to deserve such rewards…
I have held a season ticket since emirates became our new home…
I’ve shouted “Theo..Theo..Theo” with the rest…but I’m bored with the lack of produce and fed up with all these demands from players that think their needs come before the clubs…
Happy for Walcott to leave, he will never be a center forward for AFC, and deserves no more cash than what he has already been offered…
Period
i think that Walcott may be sold, just now Arsenal.com has a link saying Gnabry is a winger and that he could be playing for the first team this year…….so that is now another player in Walcotts position and he isn’t signing a contract and is demanding that he plays as a striker (i reckon this is not true i reckon it is about money but this is another thing he is complaining about) and gnabry is a better player than Walcott in general not just in the wing position.
Maybe Walcott does not deserve a chance to play striker, but there has never been any evidence that he’s asked for 100k and blog posts like this are petty and unhelpful.
This 100k number has been thrown about by blogger’s and picked up in the media, but it is pure rumor that’s directly contradicted by both Arsne Wenger’s public comments in August, as well as Walcott’s a few days ago.
A few years ago, a considerably more excited Walcott (when asked about his recently signed extension) mentioned that Wenger had assured him he would be given opportunities to play as a striker. This never occurred. Not even once. Not even in cup games. Walcott has been 100% consistent in his statements over the last 3 or 4 years and Wenger’s own statements in August back that up.
So I think snarky posts like this are really really unfair. That’s not to say I believe Walcott should play striker. That is up to the sole discretion of Wenger. But given that Gervinho (whose scored far fewer goals for Arsenal than Walcott) has been given the chance, and given past assurances to Walcott, I think it’s completely fair for him to push for it. If Weger comes clean with Walcott and tells him that he will just never get the chance, then it’s probably best for both Walcott and Arsenal that he moves on to a club that will give him the opportunity.
We should thank him for his service and move on.
I think if walcott concentrates on his work/play on the field, the money will come when the time is right. In the mean time he makes more money than most people. He has time on his side, since he is only 23. No doubt he has great talent, and blistering speed, but it takes time to become the finished article.
one name Cliff Bastin left winger he scored a few Mr Walcott
Thank you for this. People have been going on about theo like the team would collapse without him. “give him a chance” etc….He is not in a position to make demands. A man without a first touch should never play upfront. His dribbling and finishing are still not world class. He is talented but still far from the finished article. And in my opinion he has lost the support of man gunners by thinking he can manage the manager
Walcott needs to get his head out of his arse and realise he is at the best club if he wants to succeed. The fact he is now an England regular is down to Arsenal Football Club. He only need to look at another Arsenal ‘genius’ who thought he was better than he actually was, to know which direction his career will head in should he continue with this deluded effort to force the clubs hands. By the way where is David Bentley nowadays
This ȋ̝̊̅§ nothing but the bitter truth of the matter…Theo ȋ̝̊̅§ good player but †̥ my own personal opinion he dosent that huge amount…what’s he playing?…if he want †̥ leave wenger should please free him Ǎ̜̣̍Ϟd let him go †̥ where he will be playing up front.
I totally agree with u..He doesn’t deserve the sum he is requesting and even if he accepts 75k he doesn’t even worth it…maybe cos he is an English player..He might be scared of the competition in his position. He has the potential but has refused to grow
It seems T. Walcott has forgotten of Ox. Is speed merchant, but cant strike as the Legend. Should consult Reys orelse will be Eboue.
Base on walcott issue let give a tryier to play as a sriker if he can delever may be we should pamanent him as a sriker.
Lets play him as a striker he will do better than Gervinho. Remember two season ago against spurs in carling cup he was played as a striker and he delivered.